The CyberRays Slate AT&T Park, San Francisco, California Aug. 25, 2001 and Aug. 25, 2011 From one champ to another San Francisco Giants outfielder Cody Ross presents former Bay Area CyberRays goalkeeper LaKeysia Beene with a souvenir World Series jersey. STORY INSIDE Maddie Payne photo From one champ to another Maddie Payne photo Eleven players from the 2001 Bay Area CyberRays gathered at AT&T Park to be honored on the 10th anniversary of their Women’s United Soccer Association championship. ____________________ Lined up across the grass "Somewhere behind the Ross – most valuable behind home plate at athlete you've become and player of last year’s AT&T Park, surrounded the hours of practice and the National League by excited children, the championship series – coaches who have pushed women who played presented each of the you is a little girl who fell in professional soccer 10 CyberRays players a years ago for the Bay love with the game and never Giants jersey. One Area CyberRays didn’t looked back ... play for her." champion to another. look like threats to the Soccer player Mia Hamm established order. ____________________ Winning the WUSA title exactly 10 years before, was difficult enough, I But threats they were winning the first suppose. As the public and are. Subversives, championship of their relations director for the hiding in plain sight. own league, the Women’s team but neither a United Soccer Association woman nor a soccer The San Francisco Giants, (WUSA), on Aug. 25, player, the most I can reigning World Series 2001. say is that winning a champions, honored championship is difficult them Thursday night for As they were introduced, by definition. what they had done Giants outfielder Cody – Continued overleaf From one champ to another – Continued from previous The team opened its season with a 1-0 loss at Washington That championship season, 2001 in the league’s inaugural game Record: 13-6-4 37 points (1 point for each Tie, 3 for a Win) and six games later, with just one victory, was still buried seven 14 April L Washington Freedom 1, CyberRays 0 0 points 8th place teams deep in the eight-team 29 April T CyberRays 1, Boston Breakers 1 1 point 7th place WUSA standings. 6 May L Philadelphia Charge 3, CyberRays 2 13 May W CyberRays 2, Carolina Courage 1 4 points 16 May L Boston Breakers 4, CyberRays 2 In the next six games, however, 27 May L Atlanta Beat 1, CyberRays 0 goalkeeper LaKeysia Beene, a 2 June W CyberRays 1, San Diego Spirit 0 7 points 6th place 10 June T CyberRays 0, New York Power 0 8 points two-time All-American at Notre 17 June W CyberRays 2, Carolina Courage 0 11 points Dame, didn’t allow a single goal, 20 June W CyberRays 3, Philadelphia Charge 0 14 points 5th place a string of consecutive shutouts 24 June T CyberRays 0, San Diego Spirit 0 15 points 4th place 8 July W CyberRays 1, New York Power 0 18 points 3rd place that would never be equaled in 12 July W CyberRays 3, Washington Freedom 2 21 points the WUSA’s three-season history. 15 July W CyberRays 2, Boston Breakers 0 24 points 2nd place 19 July T CyberRays 1, Atlanta Beat 1 25 points Twelve games into the 21-game 22 July W CyberRays 1, Washington Freedom 0 28 points 25 July L San Diego Spirit 2, CyberRays 0 regular season, the CyberRays 29 July W CyberRays 2, Carolina Courage 1 31 points 1st place had climbed from last place to 2 August W CyberRays 3, Philadelphia Charge 2 34 points third. Five more games and two 5 August W CyberRays 1, New York Power 0 37 points 9 August L Atlanta Beat 4, CyberRays 0 more Beene shutouts put them atop the league. They eliminated WUSA Semifinals New York 3-2 in the playoff 18 Aug. W CyberRays 3, New York Power 2 semifinals and then went to WUSA Championship Foxboro, Mass., to beat Atlanta 25 Aug. W CyberRays 3, Atlanta Beat 3 (CyberRays win 4-2 on penalty kicks) 4-2 on penalty kicks after regulation and two overtimes ended in a 3-3 tie. Final Regular Season Standings W L T Pts x CyberRays 11 6 4 37 “The relative positions to be x Atlanta Beat 10 4 7 37 assumed by man and woman in the x New York Power 9 7 5 32 x Philadelphia Charge 9 8 4 31 working out of our civilization San Diego Spirit 7 7 7 28 were assigned long ago by a higher Boston Breakers 8 10 3 27 Washington Freedom 6 12 3 21 intelligence than ours.” Carolina Courage 6 12 3 21 President Grover Cleveland x – advance to playoffs ___________________________________ Yet through history, no matter what the equal rights battle has been – in the number of women in medical racial, religious, sexual orientation, schools between the 1972 enactment of country of origin or any other reason Title IX– the federal civil rights law people dreamed up – achieving has never requiring schools to provide equal been as difficult as getting a fair chance. opportunity to girls in all educational For women, winning games has always activities and programs – and the 2001 been easier than just getting on the field. CyberRays’ championship season happened with little controversy and The 600 percent increase of women in almost no notice. law schools and the 500 percent increase – Continued overleaf From one champ to another – Continued from previous But the words “Hi, I’m Dr. Samantha Jones and I’ll be doing your vasectomy” never struck fear in the American sports world the way “Hi, I’m Samantha Jones, and my classmates and I want to play softball” did. Some people never learn to share their toys. Others believe that if Eve, Sarah, Esther and Mary didn’t score goals in the Bible, they shouldn’t score goals today. Still, most Americans seem to have no problem with women’s sports. At the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, where women’s soccer was added to the program for the first time, I covered the semifinals and medal games that drew crowds of 64,000 and 76,000 in the University of Georgia’s football stadium. Three years later, when the Women’s World Cup – soccer’s world championship – was played in the United States for the first time, the games I covered included the USA-Brazil semifinal at Stanford (attendance 73,173) and the USA-China championship in the Rose Bowl (90,125). Australian Julie Murray nails her – Continued overleaf game-winning penalty kick ... John Todd photos ... and teammates (L- R) Brandi Chastain, Gina Oceguera (partly hidden), Tisha Venturini, Jacqui Little, Carey Dorn, Kelly Lindsey (partly hidden) and Thori Bryan celebrate. From one champ to another – Continued from previous Starting a professional women’s league, then, seemed to make CyberRays at the celebration sense, even to those who for 30 Midfielder Sissi, hometown Sao Paulo, Brazil (now living in Concord, Calif.), 3-time years continued to try to weaken member of Brazil’s Women’s World Cup team and 2-time member of Brazil’s Olympic Title IX’s rules for school and team, assisted on Tisha Venturini’s goal in the 86th minute that sent the WUSA championship game to overtime. college sports. Midfielder and defender Brandi Chastain, hometown San Jose, 4-time member of Pro sports, though, are all business the U.S. World Cup team (she scored the championship-winning penalty kick against and not covered by Title IX. The China in the Rose Bowl in 1999), 2-time member of the U.S. Olympic team with a gold medal in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and a member of 2 NCAA final four soccer U.S. men’s soccer league at first teams at Santa Clara University, scored first CyberRays goal against the Atlanta Beat tried to profit by starting a in the WUSA championship game. women’s league but backed off Defender Thori Bryan, hometown Joppatowne, Md. (now living in Wake Forest, when the top players, including N.C.), member of the bronze medalist U.S. World Cup team in 1995 in Sweden, only CyberRays captain Brandi player in the WUSA to play every minute of every game in the 2001 season, played Chastain, refused to play for it. collegiately for North Carolina State. They had investors for a league Defender Lisa Nañez, hometown Los Gatos, Calif., member of the 1999 Mexico of their own. Women’s World Cup team, played collegiately for Santa Clara University. Nevertheless, the TV rights fees Forward and midfielder Kim Clark, hometown Cupertino, Calif., played collegiately at the University of Southern California, scored a goal and an assist in 2-1 regular for the women’s national team season victory over Carolina that put CyberRays into first place. were owned by and paid to the men’s professional league. The Forward Megan Horvath, hometown Santa Clara, Calif., (now living in San Mateo, Calif.) assisted on game-winning goal over the New York Power in the WUSA men’s pro soccer team in San semifinals, played collegiately at Santa Clara University. Jose blocked the CyberRays’ attempt to play at San Jose State’s Goalkeeper Janine Szpara, hometown San Jose (now living in Portland, Ore.) Spartan Stadium until the mayor played collegiately at Colorado College. coughed up enough money to buy Goalkeeper LaKeysia Beene, hometown Gold River, Calif., (now living in them off. The CyberRays did get to Sacramento) had a league record 6 consecutive shutout games and 624 consecutive keep their hotdog revenue.